My wife is also a teacher(1). While I didn't go to a Halloween party with her coworkers this year I've been to quite a few other parties with teachers. So maybe don't make assumptions about my world view huh?
I never said that metrics were the final answer to every question either. Teaching is obviously an incredibly nuanced profession. If, as Michael Lewis showed us, we can't even measure baseball player's performance very well then oh gosh it's going to be much much harder for teachers (or programmers too!).
But that doesn't mean there aren't any differences in skill either. There are great programmers. There are not so good programmers. There are great teachers. There are bad teachers. If we deny this reality and just pay them the same amount then eventually the good ones are going to figure out they're getting screwed no matter how much they intrinsically like the gig.
I never said that metrics were the final answer to every question either. Teaching is obviously an incredibly nuanced profession. If, as Michael Lewis showed us, we can't even measure baseball player's performance very well then oh gosh it's going to be much much harder for teachers (or programmers too!).
But that doesn't mean there aren't any differences in skill either. There are great programmers. There are not so good programmers. There are great teachers. There are bad teachers. If we deny this reality and just pay them the same amount then eventually the good ones are going to figure out they're getting screwed no matter how much they intrinsically like the gig.
1. http://www.fordham.edu/academics/programs_at_fordham_/commun...